


Dawn of a New Era

by lemonroe



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Female Harry Potter, Gen, House Elves, Mentor Severus Snape, Not Beta Read, One Shot, POV Severus Snape, Pureblood Culture (Harry Potter), Slytherin Harry Potter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-02
Updated: 2020-12-02
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:07:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27843454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lemonroe/pseuds/lemonroe
Summary: Harriet Lily Potter vanishes from her cupboard on her 9th birthday. There is no trace of her for two years.
Relationships: Harry Potter & Severus Snape
Comments: 6
Kudos: 171





	Dawn of a New Era

~~

Severus Snape hesitated at the hidden door that would lead to the Slytherin Common Room. His brand-new Snakes were waiting for him on the other side of this door. _She_ was waiting for him on the other side of this door. Severus had not been able to get a detailed look at her face from his position at the Head Table. He saw her long black hair, her glasses, but little else. The details of her face were a mystery to him. Would she look like Potter? He shook himself and took a fortifying breath before he pushed open the door. _She is one of my snakes now. It does not matter who she looks like._

~~

Severus swans into the Slytherin Common Room after the Welcome Feast to find 10 brand new snakes. He makes eye contact with each one until he reaches Harriet Potter. Her face is downcast. The clench of her jaw could have suggested defiance if Severus were not privy to what the Headmaster uncovered at the Dursleys. It was a few moments before he notices that there are toes visible.

“Potter!”

Her eyes snap up to his. _So green. So like hers._ He quickly examines the rest of her face. There is a fair bit of James Potter present, but her eyes and nose are all Lily.

He then notices how much her neck is straining to look up at him. _She is short. Too short._ He thinks. Malnourishment will do that to a child but looking at her now there is no trace of that. She looks like she has been eating well for a decent amount of time. Her cheeks hold a healthy amount of baby fat and while she looks a little on the thin side, it is not dangerously thin.

_Where have you been, little one? Has anyone been taking care of you?_

“Where are your shoes?”

“They’re in my bag, sir.”

“Why are they in your bag and not on your feet?”

A few of the boys snicker at his scolding tone. He glares at them until they cow, well aware of his reputation. Satisfied, he turns back to Harriet.

“I don’t like wearing them, sir”

“You don’t like wearing them?”

“No, sir.”

_Well at least the girl is respectful, but how much of that respect comes from fear?_

He takes a fortifying breath.

“Well, I am afraid I have to insist that you wear them outside your dormitory room, from now on. This castle is very far north and is often quite cold regardless of the season and the wards prevent us from placing permanent warming charms on the floors.”

Harry visibly considers his words, then plops right down on the floor and puts her shoes and socks back on. She then gets back up and looks into his eyes again.

“That makes sense sir. Thank you for explaining it to me.”

_Ah. It is like that._ Harry was presented with a rule than the reason behind the rule. She worked through the logic and decided that obedience made the most sense. Children like that will break any rule they can logic around. _Need to keep an eye on that. She is clever too. Perhaps too clever for her own good._

Severus refocuses on the remaining First Years as he gives his Official Welcome to Slytherin ™ speech. He makes eye contact with his godson as he emphasizes the point that _The House Sticks Together. Slytherins are united._ He then makes a split-second decision and announces that tomorrow morning all Slytherin First Years must submit to a health check, then sends them to bed.

~~

Sleep had eluded Severus last night. He noticed that Harr- Potter, had been placed in a room with Tracey Davis and Daphne Greengrass. _Good. Neutral families._ It was unlikely her dorm mates would attempt to harm her in the name of the Dark Lord. Some of the boys, on the other hand, he would have to keep an eye on them.

Severus just could not fall asleep with the memory of those eyes burning into his skull. So open. So green. No one knew where Potter had been these last two years. She vanished from the Dursley home into thin air and there had been no trace of her for two years until Hogwarts had received Harriet Potter’s acceptance by owl. It had obviously penned by a child, a child with halfway decent handwriting, but a child, nonetheless.

Albus had gone to the station himself to see if he could spot Harriet as she boarded the train. No one had seen her until the Sorting and the only reason they knew she was on the train at all was her name on the passenger register.

Severus ponders what the events of the day will bring as he sits at the Head Table. He called for the health check solely to take a look at what Potter’s recovery has been like. He has no idea if she received proper medical care after what Dursley did to her. His hand clenches on the silverware until he can feel it biting into his skin. He has no reasons to suspect any poor behavior with respect to his other Snake’s parents. To harm a Magical Child is a horrible crime. Children are gifts.

He watches as a Prefect hands out the times everyone should report to the Hospital Wing. He has requested that Madame Pomphrey assist him, and she was happy to do so.

He finishes off his tea and rises, wiping his hands on his napkin. Time to get to work.

~~

Severus sends the Zabini boy away. It is as he suspected. Poppy had shared the results of all the girls, save Potter, and they had been in good health. Perhaps the Davis girl could do with more Calcium in her diet, but her bones were developing normally.

By his estimates, Poppy should be finishing up with Potter now.

“Severus?”

He turns and sees her wringing her hands anxiously. He rises swiftly to his feet and begins to walk toward her.

“You need to see this.”

She hands him a rather long piece of parchment as he steps behind the privacy curtains erected for the exam. He looks over to where Potter sits shaking on the bed. She glances up through the bits of hair that have escaped her braid. She meets his eyes for a brief moment before ducking her chin and hiding her eyes once more.

Harry then balls her fists and stands. She marches over and hands Poppy an envelope sealed with the Potter Crest. Harriet then all but sprints back to the bed and climbs up on in, tucking her feet underneath her and wrapping her arms around her knees.

Madame Pomphrey shows the seal to Severus and they share a look. _Where has this girl been?_ She breaks the seal and quickly scans the brief note.

“Heiress Potter,” Madame Pomphrey addresses Harry formally.

Severus looks sharply over at Potter.

“I request your permission to share the contents of this letter with your Head of House here Professor Snape. Professor Snape is our chief brewer and I will need his assistance with some of this.”

Harry looks at Severus for a few long moments and seems to take his measure. She then looks back to Poppy.

“Yes Ma’am, you may.” Her voice is barely above a whisper. She has stopped shaking.

Poppy hands him the letter.

To the Hogwarts Head Healer,

_Heiress Harriet Lily Potter is a first-year student at Hogwarts this year and is in need of specific on-going medical care. She is in need of nutrient potions (I leave the specific regimen up to your expertise) for the foreseeable future. Harry is also prone to bouts of walking Pneumonia and needs to be monitored for potential breathing issues. Harry suffered from an attack from a relative on her 9 th birthday and while the physical damage from that night was healed, the damage from years of neglect and exposure has taken its toll. In addition to this, there are signs of lingering mental, physical, and emotional abuse. It is theorized that once the Potter Heiress reaches magical majority, her magical inheritance will fix the breathing issues and problems from lingering malnourishment and there should be no more health problems, but until then she is under the care and protection of Potter Family Magic to ensure the continuation of The Line. _

Sincerely, The Potter Family Head Elf Tilly

Severus can barely keep himself from weeping. _Lilly’s little girl._ Severus takes a fortifying breath. The Potter Line Protection will prove an issue. If was he suspects is correct, they will have a hard time keeping any kind of watch over her.

He glances over the results of the scan and turns to Harry. He kneels to be at her eye level.

“You will consume one nutrient potion twice daily. You will take one before breakfast and one before dinner every day. In addition, you will attend weekly meetings with me. As you did not grow up in the Wizarding World there likely are gaps in your education. I will remedy this. After you receive your class timetable, you will come to my office and we will arrange a time that is equitable to us both. Do you understand?”

She looks into his eyes. He resists the temptation to dip behind them.

The girl nods. 

"A verbal answer if you please," Snape was very proud that he kept his voice even. 

Yes, sir.” She whispers.

And so, begins the mentorship of one Harriet Potter by Severus Snape.


End file.
